93 | A Bouldering Gold Rush In Fraser Canyon w/ Denis Langlois

Today I sit down with Denis Langlois — father, climber, and dedicated route developer. Like many of us he balances climbing with a busy life of work and family. Denis found that bouldering gave him the most freedom. It let him climb on his own schedule — quick sessions, solo missions, and total flexibility.

One day, while commuting to a job site, he passed through a narrow canyon next to his home town in in British Columbia, Canada..and something caught his eye… boulders — tons of them. Unclimbed and Untouched. Denis knew he had to come back.

Fast forward to today — thanks to his vision and the help of a few committed locals, the Fraser Canyon is now home to more than 80 established boulder problems, ranging from V0 to V10, with development still ongoing.

In this episode, we dive into the deep and layered history of Fraser Canyon — from the Gold Rush to its roots in Indigenous land. Denis shares his personal journey in climbing, how he fell in love with the area, and what it’s been like developing a climbing destination from scratch.

He’s also teamed up with video producer Jesse Wheeler to create a beautiful short film about the canyon and its development — be sure to check that out after the show.

I love having route developers on this show — these are the folks literally giving back to the community by creating more places for us to climb and they usually do so out of their own pocket with their own passion… So if you’re ever heading up to Squamish, looking to avoid the crowds and try something new, make a stop in Fraser Canyon. Check out the boulders, soak in the views, and if you can, give Denis a shout — as I am sure he’d be stoked to show you around.

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Resources

Kaya Climbing App (Download For Route Information)

Short Film: Gold Rush: The Nuggets They Left Behind

Denis' IG

Jesse's IG

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction
• 4:00 Fraser Canyon
• 29:53 Denis' Climbing Journey
• 58:06 Climbing Area: Gold Rush
• 1:03:29 Route Development
• 1:06:06 Climbing Area: Gold Beach
• 1:12:44 Climbing Area: Achelos
• 1:18:15 Climbing Area: Saw Mill Creek
• 1:20:37 The Film
• 1:25:48 Find Climbs in Fraser Canyon

Transcript

00:00:00:00 - 00:00:09:24
Kyle
Welcome to the Climbing Majority podcast, where I capture the stories, experiences and lessons of nonprofessional climbers, guides and athletes from around the world.

00:00:09:26 - 00:00:14:17
Kyle
Come join me as I dive deep into a more relatable world of climbing.

00:00:16:15 - 00:00:36:14
Kyle
What's up everybody? I'm your host, Kyle Broxton, and I am fresh off my first real climbing trip to Yosemite. It was also my partner Hannah's first time in the valley, so I figured it was only right that we summit Upper Cathedral Spire together for our first climb. While I was at the top of pitch two, I looked over and saw none other than Michael Vail, previous guest and one half of the Godfather duo.

00:00:36:16 - 00:00:54:07
Kyle
He was off route, somewhat climbing past me with that full send energy he's known for. And right behind him was Tanner Harnish, also past guest and fellow quad father. I had unknowingly stepped right into the middle of one of their most recent link ups, where they summited all five of the cathedral formations in a blistering ten hours and five minutes.

00:00:54:09 - 00:01:22:05
Kyle
Only ten minutes after Hannah and I had finished our climb, we watched Michael and Tanner summit the lower spire from one of the best vantage points in the valley. Watching them move so fluidly across terrain like it was nothing was wildly inspiring. The next day, my go to partner, Bryce and I went for Voyager. We were both honestly pretty nervous hiking up to the view buttress, but other than my one and only fall at the 11 seat boulder problem, we both sent all seven pitches clean, something neither of us thought was even on the table.

00:01:22:07 - 00:01:43:04
Kyle
That achievement, combined with the encounter of Michael and Tanner, got me thinking. What's the one thing that all climbers who inspire us seem to have in common? It's not always training harder, finger boarding more, or some innate talent that we don't possess. From what I've seen, both from the interviews on this show and my own climbing experience, it's time on rock.

00:01:43:06 - 00:02:02:12
Kyle
Most of us are physically more capable than we realize. What holds us back isn't our strength. It's our head. When we're tense, we burn unnecessary energy and lose that focus and flow. We need to climb well and hard. So how do we feel? More relaxed. How do we stay calm on the wall? It's simple. We need to climb more.

00:02:02:15 - 00:02:28:06
Kyle
Desensitize your mind and body. Yet your mileage in there is just no substitute for time on rock. Today I sit down with Dennis Langlois, father, climber and dedicated root developer. Like many of us, he balances climbing with a busy life of work and family. Dennis found that bouldering gave him the most freedom let him climb on his own schedule, quick sessions, solo missions, and total flexibility.

00:02:28:09 - 00:02:55:17
Kyle
One day, while commuting to a job site, he passed through a narrow canyon next to his hometown in British Columbia, Canada, and something caught his eye. Boulders, tons of them, unclaimed and untouched. Dennis knew he had to come back. Fast forward to today. Thanks to his vision and the help of a few committed locals, the Fraser Canyon is now home to more than 80 established boulder problems, ranging from V0 to V ten, with developments still ongoing.

00:02:55:20 - 00:03:18:01
Kyle
In this episode, we dive into the deep and layered history of Fraser Canyon, from the gold rush to its roots in indigenous lands. Dennis also shares his personal journey in climbing, how he fell in love with the area, and what it's been like to develop a climbing destination from scratch. He's also teamed up with video producer Jesse Wheeler to create a beautiful short film about the canyon and its development, so be sure to check that out after the show.

00:03:18:04 - 00:03:34:23
Kyle
I love having Rob developers on this show. These are literally the folks giving back to the community by creating more places for us to climb, and they usually do so out of their own pocket with their own passion. So if you're ever heading up to Squamish looking to avoid the crowds and try something new, make a stop in Fraser Canyon.

00:03:34:25 - 00:03:49:09
Kyle
Check out the boulders. Soak in the views and if you can, give Dennis a shout, as I'm sure he'd be psyched to show you around. And now I bring you Dennis Langlois and his new development, the Fraser Canyon.

00:03:59:25 - 00:04:11:19
Kyle
Give me a kind of a detailed description of Fraser Canyon. Why? Why do we want to be there? What is cool about it? And, why has it inspired you to make this film?

00:04:11:19 - 00:04:17:14
Denis
Yeah. So the, the Fraser Canyon, you know, a lot of people, come to B.C..

00:04:17:17 - 00:04:18:07
Denis
From around.

00:04:18:07 - 00:04:39:14
Denis
The world to go to Squamish. It's like the Kenney Canadian Mecca for for rock climbing and bouldering. You know, it's, there's a lot of people that travel out there. A lot of people I know from out, eastern provinces and eastern states that, make it out here almost every year to, to visit Squamish and, where I live.

00:04:39:14 - 00:04:40:23
Denis
Were.

00:04:40:25 - 00:05:05:03
Denis
So Squamish is about an hour north or 45 minutes north of Vancouver, and were about an hour and a half east of Vancouver. And you can't you can't bypass Vancouver. So basically, you know, to get to Squamish, it's about 2.5 hour ish from where I live. So when I first moved to, B.C., that's the place, you know, is the Mecca.

00:05:05:03 - 00:05:25:09
Denis
So that's where that's where you go climbing. That's where you want to, go try out some of the classic boulders. So that's, you know, that's where that's where I went. But when, you know, Covid hit and then I started to spend, spent a bit more time in the Fraser Valley and, I, I worked for dairy farms.

00:05:25:10 - 00:05:45:04
Denis
I work with dairy farms in, in all over B.C., so I get to travel and see a lot of different places. And, there was always this place that I would drive up in the Fraser Canyon on my way to one of the farms that I would, I would notice this massive boulder, on the side of the highway.

00:05:45:07 - 00:05:47:07
Denis
And it was hard to tell because it was.

00:05:47:10 - 00:05:47:19
Denis
You know.

00:05:47:19 - 00:06:01:25
Denis
Pretty treed up and all around it and in front of it. So, like, I couldn't really tell if there was anything behind it. And every time I drive up, I'd be like, man, I gotta, I gotta stop by and I gotta go see what's out there. You know, I gotta.

00:06:01:27 - 00:06:02:15
Denis
Just, just.

00:06:02:18 - 00:06:23:09
Denis
Curious to see what's what's there. And, yeah, after a couple of years of driving there, I finally, I was up in the canyon with my family, and, coming back from one of the tourist, area, I was like, let me stop by a quick and, so I stopped by, I go check out the boulder.

00:06:23:09 - 00:06:39:26
Denis
I'm like, wow, this is a pretty massive boulder. It's looks pretty fun. And then I, I go behind it and then I start seeing more boulders, and I see, a big one that has, like, a massive, with in, in it. And I'm like, wow, this is, this is sick.

00:06:39:28 - 00:06:40:17
Denis
Like.

00:06:40:19 - 00:06:58:11
Denis
So I'm going to have to come back to, to this, you know, it's like right away, that was, I think December 20th, 20 and then, yeah, I was like, this is all right away. I was like, this is the place I'm going to come for, for, for the next little bit anyways and see, see what's, what's what's there.

00:06:58:11 - 00:07:00:16
Denis
Right. And.

00:07:00:16 - 00:07:06:27
Kyle
vision. Looking at this place was just like you had you. You were gold struck in by this like vision of first

00:07:07:14 - 00:07:31:13
Denis
Yeah. Exactly. By, by that time, I had already, been developing other boulders here and there in like, some of the established area in the Fraser Valley, around where I live. But when I found that, I was like, this is just just nice. It's just like a pure, untouched climbing area where I could just have fun and discover.

00:07:31:13 - 00:07:43:25
Denis
Right. It's like that, adventure part of bouldering and discovering new things. And seeing if anything is possible and what's possible so that that's that's what really attracted me to, to that.

00:07:43:25 - 00:07:57:17
Kyle
How does this particular place that you found on, you know your travels differ from the place that's close to your, to your home that you were establishing first two sets and like is it like how far of a drive is it. You're saying it's still part of this kind of Fraser Valley? How

00:07:58:14 - 00:07:59:12
Denis
Yeah. So,

00:07:59:14 - 00:08:22:28
Denis
I mean, the Fraser Valley extends from like, basically Vancouver all the way to where we are. So it's an hour and a half like, very. Yeah, it's pretty big valley, but, there's nothing really, you know, between Vancouver and Abbotsford, which is a an hour from Vancouver. There's not much in there. Maybe on the north side.

00:08:22:28 - 00:08:42:18
Denis
But anyways, there's there isn't that much until you get to where we are. So like, where I am at the far end of the Fraser Valley is called Agassi. A small town, that I always like to call the the island of the Fraser Valley because it's, like, tucked away in between rivers and it's like it's not an island, but, you know, it just feels like it is.

00:08:42:20 - 00:09:03:06
Denis
And so from my place, there's probably, one, two, three, four, there's probably 5 or 6 different, different zone that have been established and have been developed. And a lot of it is by, I don't know if you know, Marc Andre le Claire from, the alpine is so he's from the town that that that I live in.

00:09:03:08 - 00:09:04:01
Denis
Yeah.

00:09:04:04 - 00:09:14:06
Denis
So, so a lot of boulders.

00:09:14:09 - 00:09:34:27
Denis
Yeah. It's it's there. There's definitely a lot of, a lot of climbs that have his name on it. And, there's a lot that, I guess I don't know, I'm sure some of the older, more local people that grew up here grew up with him, know some of the climbs that, you know, they've never been published or they've never been told to anyone.

00:09:34:27 - 00:10:04:01
Denis
So, you know, that was his style, I think, from what I know of him. Exactly. So I think there's a lot more that, yeah, a lot of people don't know about. But he's definitely, you know, had a big community out here and, a lot of, so him and his group, you know, have established, a lot of climbs out here, like Marco LaFave and Nate was or guys that, you know, for years and years, they've developed, a lot of the areas here.

00:10:04:04 - 00:10:11:02
Denis
But it's very, similar in a way to like what you have in Squamish. A lot of it is, either talus.

00:10:11:02 - 00:10:11:19
Denis
Or.

00:10:11:25 - 00:10:37:00
Denis
Forested area. They're really nice. Really nice areas is good boulders, good clusters and, good quality rock as well. But what's really different is when you hit the canyon, the canyon has a lot of history because that's where that's where basically, everything came through, you know, between between, the mountains and Alberta. There's no way through.

00:10:37:00 - 00:10:39:05
Denis
So everything came through the canyon.

00:10:40:19 - 00:11:25:04
Denis
So there's a lot of history in there, and it's just, very, very picturesque area. It's just like you're you're tucked in like, very, very tight, mountains, tall peaks. And the terrain that you have is quite varied. So, so, like the first area that I discovered is in some talus and forested area. And then you cross the highway and you get into these like crazy beaches that, where, where a lot of the people that came in prospect and try to find gold, that's where they would have gone, because that's where, you know, the current would have made piles of sand and people would have gone there to try to find gold.

00:11:25:06 - 00:11:43:14
Denis
And then so, so, yeah, it's just, the, the valley and the way it differs from, the, sorry, the canyon and the way it differs from the valley, is just like, so beautiful. And you're just like. Yeah, tucked in between these mountains, the sun peaks over the the peaks. And you're like, on the beach there.

00:11:43:14 - 00:11:54:10
Denis
And it's just like, yeah, it's just beautiful.

00:11:54:12 - 00:11:59:05
Denis
It is.

00:11:59:08 - 00:12:06:00
Denis
Yeah.

00:12:06:02 - 00:12:31:00
Denis
Yeah. So I mean, you know, the the the I guess this the history that I know anyways is, is that Simon Fraser tried to, come in and find, the West Coast or find new development, new place to develop or colonized. And, so he had a lot of, indigenous, people guide him through the canyon, where there was no roads.

00:12:31:00 - 00:12:58:02
Denis
And it was like basically cliff hanging the whole way through because it is, a pretty crazy river, especially because a good chunk of, of the of BC gets funneled through the Fraser Canyon to get to the ocean. So when the, when the water melts from the mountains and, and in the spring, then the river gets into this narrow channel and rises up like crazy.

00:12:58:02 - 00:13:13:17
Denis
So a lot of the boulders that we climb on, on the beaches, you know, they're massive, like, you know, 30, 40ft boulders and some are a bit higher. And those also get underwater when the river comes up.

00:13:18:13 - 00:13:22:28
Denis
Easy. Yeah, exactly.

00:13:23:01 - 00:13:23:16
Denis
Yeah.

00:13:23:19 - 00:13:37:20
Denis
It's easy. So, like, if you watch the film, you see the the boulder at close. It's the big prow where, there's Aphrodite is of eternal on it. I don't know if you recall that one, but,

00:13:37:22 - 00:13:39:16
Denis
Yeah. So so you can see the.

00:13:39:16 - 00:13:41:13
Denis
River behind it, and it's, like, pretty.

00:13:41:13 - 00:13:43:06
Denis
Low.

00:13:43:08 - 00:14:13:02
Denis
Below it. And that that boulder there's like, just a small, small peak that you see when the river comes up. Because that's like one of the narrowest, spots in, in, in the canyon. So it rises like, so much that. Yeah, it doesn't rise for that long. So it's underwater for maybe two months ish. But it's still a pretty impressive.

00:14:13:05 - 00:14:42:10
Denis
I've seen the change. It's over a couple of days. You know, well, to to to rise over the boulder completely, like, it's probably over, like, two, three week period. But you can see, like, like we'll go to a boulder that's on one of the beach, and you can see the the water is starting to come up, and then you go like three days later and it's like, now you can like, now you can't climb on it because the water is at the boulder.

00:14:42:10 - 00:14:53:24
Denis
And then you go three days later and it's like halfway up the boulder, you know? So it's like it's yeah, it's pretty impressive to, to see and it, it, makes for, for a very interesting terrain.

00:14:54:07 - 00:14:56:00
Kyle
Yeah. Absolutely.

00:14:56:02 - 00:15:20:21
Kyle
Back onto the history of this area. Are there any, like, physical evidence of this kind of like historical culture that has kind of like almost given itself? You know, it's almost like this historical nature with the, you know, the indigenous tribes, Simon Frazier, the gold rush, like, there's so much story behind this canyon. Is there any physical evidence that you found,

00:15:22:01 - 00:15:45:10
Denis
Yeah. I mean, you know, some of the stories, that that I've heard or that I've seen from talking for, some of the, local natives and, they still have, you know, their own, family fishing grounds. So the the Fraser Canyon, from what I, I know is the only place that you can air dry salmon.

00:15:45:12 - 00:15:59:21
Denis
So, like the families. Because because it funnels like the the wind comes through there, so fast that they can just, like, basically put their salmon on trays and, like, I'm not sure if that's the correct term, but anyways.

00:16:00:23 - 00:16:19:22
Denis
And then the, the wind just blows so hard that it dries the salmon. So, so you can see some of those camps that are still there. You know, I don't know how it evolved over time and history, but, you know, you you can see that the families are still fishing there and they're still drying fish there.

00:16:19:24 - 00:16:26:15
Denis
And you can see like some remnants of, like, old cabins, like I said, it's hard to tell. Are they from the Gold Rush.

00:16:26:15 - 00:16:27:00
Denis
Era.

00:16:27:00 - 00:16:51:20
Denis
From when they are? But yeah, you can see some remnants of that in from, from when they first built like the, the salmon passage as well. There's old, old ruins, from, from when they first, built like, channels for the salmon to go up the, the river and, you can see the old, bridge, there's a, old, old highway.

00:16:51:23 - 00:17:13:14
Denis
So we crossed the old highway to, to get to some of the boulders as well. So it's like, the highway from, like, the early 1900s, that eventually got paved and eventually got, got blown out too many times. So they decided to do another one here, you know. So, so we used that highway actually to get to some of the areas.

00:17:13:14 - 00:17:42:28
Denis
So, and I know there's places that have like hieroglyphics, or, petroglyphs. Yeah, exactly. From, from that, era. But I, I haven't seen any myself. And there's another spot that, one of the local told me that, people go to, search for gold still, because there's an old, train wreck, apparently is down in the river that the sand just gathers in it.

00:17:42:28 - 00:18:04:16
Denis
And then people go, I've tried to find it, but, based on what she told me. But I haven't, found it. So. No, no, I it's really just because. Because the train, fell down there. So now the sand gets into there. So then there's more chance. A higher chance. Yeah. Exactly. So.

00:18:04:18 - 00:18:08:20
Denis
Yeah. Yeah. So.

00:18:08:22 - 00:18:28:08
Denis
No, actually, very recently I saw, one guy come down to the boulders as I was, leaving, and I was like, are you going, gold pen? And he was like, yeah. I was like, how much do you make? You know, when you do it, like, do you find enough? He was like, yeah, good day. I'll make like 150 bucks, you know, and I was like, oh, that's pretty sweet.

00:18:28:08 - 00:18:30:08
Denis
Maybe I should bring a pen. And you know.

00:18:30:10 - 00:18:35:11
Denis
What? I'm, So. Yeah. Yeah, if I'm.

00:18:35:11 - 00:18:39:26
Denis
Just, sitting sitting there between goals, you know, grab a bit of sad and.

00:18:39:28 - 00:18:42:08
Denis
Yeah, I'll make my.

00:18:42:08 - 00:18:44:28
Denis
My wife happy and I'll bring a bit of gold.

00:18:45:00 - 00:18:48:13
Denis
Up.

00:18:48:16 - 00:18:50:24
Denis
Now. Exactly. Yeah, yeah.

00:18:50:26 - 00:18:53:14
Denis
Pay for the pads.

00:18:53:16 - 00:19:05:10
Denis
Yeah.

00:19:05:10 - 00:19:05:24
Kyle


00:19:06:20 - 00:19:08:28
Denis
Yeah, exactly.

00:19:09:01 - 00:19:11:01
Denis
Yeah. Exactly.

00:19:11:01 - 00:19:21:09
Kyle
so talk to me about these two tribes. Talk to me. Be about kind of the history. And also how that relates to, like, where they are currently in this

00:19:21:27 - 00:19:45:28
Denis
Yeah. So, all the boulders that we've developed so far are in between those two, those two, nations, basically. So, you have the town of Yale, which was the Yale that also saw the gold rush, but there's, there's a native band that that is there that lives there. And a bit further up the canyon is the spasm, spasm, nation.

00:19:46:01 - 00:19:58:13
Denis
So there's still a lot of people that, live there and have their, their land, and in between the two, it's all it's all native land. So, so, yeah, all the boulders that we climb on.

00:19:59:05 - 00:20:18:02
Denis
Are on their land. So basically, when I first discovered it, I was like, yeah, maybe I should, you know, I should ask, if we if we can, if that's okay. Because I don't know what they use it for. You know, that's the only thing I knew was from, the sort of, you know, last 50 year history.

00:20:18:02 - 00:20:20:19
Denis
So, like, I, I didn't know much at the time. Right.

00:20:25:04 - 00:20:47:21
Denis
Basically, I just do, parcel search on, online. So there's, like a website for BC I'm sure every probably states or province have their own specific website, the search for parcel identification. And on there I can tell you like, who owns it. You know, and what the land is and, and whatnot.

00:20:47:24 - 00:20:54:17
Denis
So.

00:20:54:20 - 00:20:55:14
Denis
Yeah. Exactly.

00:20:55:14 - 00:21:18:05
Denis
Yeah. At first that's, that's what I, that's what I was doing. And then, and then once I found out, then I, and at first I wasn't too sure. Is it Yale. Is it spasm? It's like, not clear. So I contacted, spasm chief, because it because it's closer to spasm. So it made sense to me that it would be, some of their territory.

00:21:18:07 - 00:21:20:05
Denis
And, so I phoned him and then.

00:21:21:13 - 00:21:49:09
Denis
And he was, like, super excited, actually. He's like, he's like, yeah, that's pretty cool that you guys want, climb out there and use the land. He was like, yeah, just, you know, I can see you're respectful because you're like, calling me to, to, to be able to do what you do. And he's like, the only thing he said was, was, just if if you have to cut down trees that are more than six inch in diameter, like, let us know, because we'll come and get it and we'll come get the wood and whatnot.

00:21:49:09 - 00:22:10:09
Denis
But yes. Yeah. And otherwise it's like, yeah, like feel free to make some trails and just make sure you respect the locals, the fishermans if you see them. And that was kind of it. And then and once we started, develop more south towards Yale and I was like, oh, maybe we'll, I think we're getting into, DeGale nation territory.

00:22:10:09 - 00:22:37:16
Denis
And, so I emailed them, tried to get in touch with the chief there as well. And, eventually he told me to just call him, and we spoke on the phone and, similar, a similar thing. He was like, he's like, yeah, that's pretty cool that you guys want to climb out there and and whatnot. He said, the only thing is, like, if you're if you're cleaning the moss off the boulders, just, you know, put some tobacco down and, like, say a prayer.

00:22:37:17 - 00:22:45:22
Denis
So, like to thank, think nature, I guess, to, to give you the, this privilege. Right.

00:22:46:23 - 00:22:57:12
Denis
So it's pretty cool, actually. It's kind of hard, honestly, to find some, tobacco. I wasn't sure where to go, you know, but, I didn't want to buy cigarets or.

00:22:57:14 - 00:23:00:03
Denis
You know, so, but I.

00:23:00:05 - 00:23:19:06
Denis
Found, I find the a local, native shop, and, the lady actually picks it up herself, and she actually told me, like, where she finds it and what it looks like and all of that. So. So anyways, I just get it from her, and then, I do what they ask for it. So, so, yeah, it's pretty cool.

00:23:19:06 - 00:23:47:10
Denis
They're, they're, they're on board with it, and it's, it's, it's nice to be able to, to give back to the community as well and, and to share that with them. So, so yeah, they've been all for.

00:23:47:12 - 00:23:48:27
Denis
I mean.

00:23:49:00 - 00:23:49:28
Denis
It.

00:23:50:01 - 00:24:15:21
Denis
It, it has the potential in terms of, I think, quality of boulder and quality of space that you're climbing in because there's also, there's also a lot of big walls, that could be like multiple, which, you know, and it's not something I do very often. So I, it's hard for me to judge, like the quality of roots and the quality of, you know, pitches and whatnot, that, that would be there.

00:24:15:28 - 00:24:22:04
Denis
But it looks like,

00:24:22:07 - 00:24:25:21
Denis
A.

00:24:25:23 - 00:24:26:25
Denis
They'd be.

00:24:26:25 - 00:24:47:10
Denis
They'd be probably. Yeah, 1000 meter. It's I'd say like some. Yeah. Yeah. So they're, they're big walls. Yeah. There's some that are not, not as big, but there's, there's lots in there. There's definitely a lot, a lot of, walls to be done. So it would have the potential to attract, a lot of climbers.

00:24:49:03 - 00:24:59:24
Denis
But I just I think it's just out of the way for a lot of people. You know, there's other places that have high quality bouldering, high quality climbing in BC as well.

00:24:59:26 - 00:25:01:06
Denis
And.

00:25:01:09 - 00:25:23:26
Denis
I think just just having Squamish over there, it's like it makes it so that, you know, people don't, don't travel as far or they it's funny because like, people will come from Alberta or from Washington or from other provinces or states, and they'll drive through a lot of those really good areas and not even, you know, start, try it out there.

00:25:23:26 - 00:25:30:18
Denis
But, yeah.

00:25:30:21 - 00:26:00:07
Denis
Exactly, exactly. So, so that was kind of the idea as well with the film is not, you know, obviously we don't want, overcrowded, but but because it's so out of the way for a lot of people, I was thinking that, you know, making a film and showing how nice it is that it would be worth the drive to come, at least check it out and try some of the, the, the climbs that are out there and hopefully to attract enough as well to the Fraser Valley.

00:26:00:07 - 00:26:15:20
Denis
Maybe they won't go as far as the Fraser Canyon, but in the Fraser Valley where, maybe at some point we don't have to, risk grab everything all the time because we are in, you know, pretty rainy, forests. Moss grows fast, and,

00:26:15:22 - 00:26:18:24
Denis
You know, things are grow pretty quick, so it's.

00:26:18:24 - 00:26:36:25
Denis
Nice to have a bit more traffic, you know, a bit more than what we have. Maybe not Squamish level, but it would be nice to have, just a little bit more to, to share the space and, have, bigger community that contribute contributes to, the climbing and, the just the whole community aspect of it.

00:26:36:25 - 00:26:47:02
Denis
Right.

00:26:47:05 - 00:26:48:16
Denis
There, a little bit.

00:26:48:16 - 00:27:08:02
Denis
So they they have a big, they have a big, plan for, potential resort in, some of the mountains in the middle of the canyon there. So, like a ski resort. And when I first talked to the, spasm chief, he was saying, like, yeah, there's, like, some massive walls out there. Like.

00:27:08:04 - 00:27:38:20
Denis
Like we actually, we're thinking to maybe get some, professional climbers to develop and clean the clean the walls and get it ready for for that, that potential resort that they're working on. So I think if that ever gets closer, then then maybe we'll, we'll talk some more about, developing that area and potentially, it's just right now there's like it's I think it's like a 2.5 hour, ATV ride, to, to get there.

00:27:38:20 - 00:27:39:23
Denis
So.

00:27:39:25 - 00:27:43:06
Denis
It's,

00:27:43:06 - 00:27:45:12
Kyle
in the sport of climbing in general.

00:27:45:12 - 00:27:47:03
Denis
There.

00:27:47:09 - 00:28:18:15
Denis
So we did, not at the spasm itself, but there's another one, just before you get into the canyon, that, I wouldn't try to, say the name because I would, but butcher that one as well. But, but I did, show the film to the community there, and there was definitely some, some of the kids, some of the teenage kids that were like, getting pretty psyched about, you know, trying trying some of the boulders and maybe at least going to the climbing gym that's close by and and starting that way.

00:28:18:15 - 00:28:37:23
Denis
So, so it's pretty cool to see that in some of the high schools that I, I showed the film to as well. The there's some people that are from these communities and, and or different bands and nations and there's a few of them too, that, that were like, this is pretty cool. Like, yeah, I've gone climbing once, but this looks like this looks pretty fun.

00:28:37:23 - 00:28:53:04
Denis
So and it's close to my place, you know? So, so it's cool to, like, peak that interest a little bit in, in the community. So hopefully that that turns into a bit, a bit more people coming out.

00:28:53:04 - 00:29:00:18
Kyle
like, net positive from your efforts. Just, like, kind of rousing the community and, getting people interested in this area that,

00:29:02:15 - 00:29:07:15
Denis
Yeah. Yeah, yeah, it's pretty cool.

00:29:07:15 - 00:29:33:01
Kyle
know, I. Before we dive into, like, these specific areas of the Fraser Valley and kind of your efforts in root development in these areas, I'd like to expand on, on kind of who you are personally and kind of give people the framework. To understand, you know, both the area and the developer. So, talk to me about how you found climbing.

00:29:33:04 - 00:29:44:07
Kyle
I have here that you found it when you were 31, which is pretty late, I would say. So, you know, I found it when I was 20, 23,

00:29:50:15 - 00:29:59:13
Kyle
talk to me about kind of your journey and, you know, how you've handled finding this passion so late in your life.

00:29:59:13 - 00:30:07:00
Kyle
vision is to create an ad free show that is completely supported by its listeners, and for that dream to become a reality, I need your help.

00:30:07:01 - 00:30:10:13
Kyle
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00:30:10:13 - 00:30:23:04
Kyle
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00:30:23:04 - 00:30:30:14
Kyle
Head on over to Patreon.com Slash, the Climbing Majority podcast. That's Patreon.com slash the Climbing Majority

00:30:31:24 - 00:30:32:10
Denis
That's one.

00:30:32:10 - 00:30:48:19
Denis
Thing that. That I always find actually pretty funny. You know, I listen to a fair amount of podcasts. Different. Different, like, eras and different, climbing podcasts. And, you know, I often hear people and be like, oh, I started pretty late, you know, I was like 16 or.

00:30:48:21 - 00:30:49:02
Denis
I was.

00:30:49:07 - 00:30:49:20
Denis
20.

00:30:49:20 - 00:31:00:18
Denis
One, and I'm like, Yeah, exactly. Yeah, totally. So, but yeah,

00:31:00:20 - 00:31:19:01
Denis
I mean, obviously, like, you know, I, I had been to, climbing gym before when I was like, I don't know, maybe 19, 20, 21, something like that. You know, I went to, one of my nephew's birthday, I think, and, Montreal, where I grew up, I grew up in Quebec, you know, so I grew up, French speaking.

00:31:19:01 - 00:31:23:14
Denis
So if anything doesn't come through properly, it's probably my French will blame it on that.

00:31:24:26 - 00:31:43:26
Denis
But, Yeah. So I so, like, I remember going to one of the gym and, I did like, I did a climb, and the guy was like, oh, you're pretty good. He's like, you should do it more often. But at the time, you know, the the climbing gyms were like that was there was no bouldering gyms, really.

00:31:43:28 - 00:32:08:27
Denis
And there was nothing close to me anyways. And I wasn't really driving all that far. And, and there was only, like, sport climbing, gyms really. So there's like. Yeah. So that's, that's, that's what was there. And the closest would have been probably 45 minutes from my place. So it was not like in my neighborhood. It was not like something that was easily accessible.

00:32:08:27 - 00:32:30:01
Denis
So, you know, I enjoyed it when I did it, but it wasn't like I'm hooked in. I want to, you know, do this much traveling to figure it all out. So it wasn't until. Yeah, I was, like, 31 that, buddy of mine invited me to, bouldering gym. It's called block shop in, in Montreal.

00:32:30:03 - 00:32:53:07
Denis
If, if ever you go there, it's one of the best climbing bouldering gyms I've ever been to. It's really good. And, just really cool vibe, you know, like, just like. Yeah, just people there, just like rock climbing, you know? Just like that good group of people. Good, good, good gym. And I was like, right away, I was like, this is my style.

00:32:53:07 - 00:33:23:06
Denis
You know, like, this is the type of climbing, that I want to do. And, so I got my pair of shoes and started climbing at the, at the gym for the first, like, I want to say two years. That's that's what I did. Just gym climbing. Similar thing with the outdoors. Where I was, there wasn't really anything close by or anything of quality or the, the people that I was bouldering with at the gym weren't going outside.

00:33:23:09 - 00:33:54:05
Denis
So so yeah, I only climbed like maybe twice outside before I moved to, BC I think twice, 2 or 3 times. Anyways, so I didn't have that much, experience outside, until I moved to, British Columbia. So, and then like. Yeah, eight years, eight years ago, I moved, yeah. Eight years ago now, moved to, BC, started to go to the local gym and then some of the guys, I was climbing with, they were like, let's go to Squamish.

00:33:54:06 - 00:34:19:23
Denis
And I was like, okay, let's, let's go like, let's I'm there and you know, and then, and just got hooked with, climbing outside and, discovering what Squamish is and, you know, all the classics that are there and just trying to get better and stronger and whatnot. And, didn't have kids at the time either. So at least for, a lot of, a lot more free time than than than I have now.

00:34:19:23 - 00:34:20:25
Denis
Yeah, exactly.

00:34:20:25 - 00:34:35:19
Denis
So and, you know, there was not as much, request from my wife to come back too early. I mean, she still wanted me to come back, home, you know, but, now it's a bit, you know, tighter, tighter time frames.

00:34:35:21 - 00:34:37:12
Denis
So.

00:34:37:14 - 00:34:57:02
Denis
So, anyways. Yeah, so I started climbing in Squamish and, and, and then, buddy of mine, actually, Alex, that's in the film as well, got me to the stacks. Is another area that's like, actually 20 minutes from my place. And once I went there, I was like. I was like, man, why am I going to Squamish like this?

00:34:57:05 - 00:35:20:01
Denis
Like, so much, like, ride around me? So, so, yeah, that's how I started to climb more regularly in, in the Fraser Valley and started, you know, the information that was on Mountain Project was, was kind of, sparse was a little bit of all over the place of some that were like, that was on Instagram, some that was on mountain projects.

00:35:20:01 - 00:35:29:00
Denis
So I was trying to consolidate a little bit of the information to, again to try to, get a bit more people to come.

00:35:29:02 - 00:35:30:09
Denis
You know.

00:35:30:11 - 00:35:41:22
Denis
Just try the quality of climbing we have in, in our area. So, so, yeah. And then the about, what it has now.

00:35:41:24 - 00:35:42:13
Denis
Yeah, yeah.

00:35:42:19 - 00:35:47:07
Denis
Just ten and a.

00:35:47:10 - 00:35:47:17
Denis
Yeah.

00:35:47:17 - 00:35:57:27
Denis
Pretty much. Yeah.

00:35:57:29 - 00:36:04:09
Denis
Yeah.

00:36:04:12 - 00:36:04:25
Denis
I.

00:36:04:25 - 00:36:34:29
Denis
I like so in general, like, I like sports that I can, I'm not dependent on anything outside of myself basically. You know I enjoy I enjoy going out with others. I enjoy climbing with my friends, I enjoy. So I've done, like, sports, like hockey and like, then team sports. But what I've really enjoyed it, like getting older and, in my 20s and whatnot.

00:36:34:29 - 00:36:36:26
Denis
I started river surfing.

00:36:38:18 - 00:37:00:26
Denis
So that, that that was a similar in a way to bouldering is all you need is your board. You know, if it's cold, you need a wetsuit. And then the wave that's all you need. You know, you don't need to wait for anyone. You can just do your sport wherever you want. And, I like high adrenaline, high strength.

00:37:00:28 - 00:37:03:22
Denis
Sports as well. You know?

00:37:03:25 - 00:37:22:21
Denis
So. So, yeah, I started river surfing, and then when I found, bouldering, it was just like. It's just like, yeah, it's you. You test your strength and you're just a couple paths, and you find a boulder and you can climb, you know, a pair of shoes or not. You know, some people climb without.

00:37:22:21 - 00:37:24:15
Denis
Shoes, but,

00:37:24:17 - 00:37:32:11
Denis
That's all you need. And.

00:37:32:13 - 00:37:36:20
Denis
Yeah, yeah.

00:37:36:22 - 00:37:43:07
Denis
Yeah. At, at the one, that's close to me. So.

00:37:43:07 - 00:38:06:15
Kyle
you're, Let me say this. Your passion for bouldering and the way you reflect on it by saying it's like this solo sport and how you're able to just rely on yourself. You don't need anybody else to kind of like, be able to make it happen. It seems, though, that you, you know, that particular passion didn't necessarily come from a lack of

00:38:08:04 - 00:38:08:21
Denis
Exactly.

00:38:08:21 - 00:38:15:06
Denis
Yeah. Yeah.

00:38:15:08 - 00:38:17:15
Denis
Yeah. Yeah.

00:38:17:15 - 00:38:35:00
Kyle
to me about the difference there. Like. Talk to me about the difference between like a sport climbing and bouldering. Because I would argue that sport climbing, while yes, you need a partner to belay you, it's still a very individualistic sport where you are. You're the one climbing, right?

00:38:35:03 - 00:38:44:18
Kyle
You know, you're climbing. It's your goal. It's it's your, connection to the rock. How does that experience differ in your eyes to that of a

00:38:47:20 - 00:39:18:16
Denis
Yeah, I think it's, you know, there's there's definitely very similar aspects to it. I think the the biggest thing is, is really if I, if, if the only time I have is from, like eight to midnight on Thursday, you know, then I don't need, hope that someone is down to do that because I do crazy stuff like that where, like, you know, I'll go out climbing in January from like 9 to 1 in the morning.

00:39:18:16 - 00:39:22:18
Denis
And, you know, there's not a lot of people there down to do that.

00:39:22:18 - 00:39:25:09
Denis
You know?

00:39:25:09 - 00:39:39:28
Kyle
of partnership that forces you or inspires you to, pursue this this sport of of bouldering because of just the the nature of when and how you like to climb and, the ability to be

00:39:40:28 - 00:39:45:17
Denis
Yeah, exactly. Yeah. There's spontaneous. Spontaneous. But anyways, that's my.

00:39:45:25 - 00:39:50:29
Denis
Yeah, that's my friend. She got that out anyway. Is that that aspect that,

00:39:51:01 - 00:40:18:10
Denis
Is, is definitely attractive to me and, and, yeah. It's just the raw power, right? It's a lot of, very hard moves back to back, you know, it's very often, yeah. Just just like, really, you got to test your strength. And I think from also coming from, you know, before that I used to do the, the gym thing, you know, I was like 3 or 4 times, a week at the gym and just got tired of it.

00:40:18:10 - 00:40:33:25
Denis
And I was like, oh, well, why am I? Well, like, what am I building muscles for? You know, it's like it's not doing anything. So I think bouldering came in at that time to where I was like, like now I can build strength for that, you know?

00:40:33:27 - 00:40:41:09
Denis
So. Yeah, exactly. So.

00:40:41:09 - 00:41:03:12
Kyle
a, at least for me. And in an integral portion of the sport of climbing, for myself. And in my reflection outside of high ball bouldering, I find that bouldering itself lends to the least amount of of possible risk in all the disciplines of climbing.

00:41:03:14 - 00:41:10:11
Kyle
How have you developed your relationship with risk, and how does it play a role in your

00:41:12:20 - 00:41:17:10
Denis
Yeah. I mean, that definitely evolved as well.

00:41:17:25 - 00:41:42:19
Denis
From, you know, not having kids to now having kids. You know, you definitely take risks that you wouldn't take. Now that that I have kids, you know, I have to go back home and work and whatnot. And the other thing, too, is, considering where I climb most of the time, a lot of the areas that I climb in, in the Fraser Valley and the Fraser Canyon, there's no reception.

00:41:42:21 - 00:42:01:05
Denis
So, you know, I, I enjoy it like high ball bouldering. I like, I, I, I like that, I love that and, but I'll do it very, very carefully and I'll, you know, practice with rope and like, I'll, I'll do, you know, a lot of, very.

00:42:01:07 - 00:42:01:18
Denis
Yeah.

00:42:01:20 - 00:42:17:13
Denis
Secure steps to, to, to make sure I don't do something stupid. You know, which might still happen, but, you know, I try to be safe about it. But, yeah, you're right. I think, it's definitely the most,

00:42:18:01 - 00:42:23:23
Denis
Safe type of climbing. I think, and,

00:42:23:23 - 00:42:38:14
Kyle
don't mean to come at this with, like, a derogatory, lens. I'm just curious into diving into, like, I guess your your risk, perception and how it plays a role in your climb. And I think you answered that question. Yeah. I mean, you're a family man. You got two kids.

00:42:38:16 - 00:42:54:06
Kyle
It's like you can't can't. They can't afford. You can't afford something going wrong. And I'm not, I'm not definitely not arguing that, like, taking a bunch of risk and putting our lives on the line is is, something that should be glorified. And honestly, if you've been following the show, it's quite the opposite.

00:42:54:06 - 00:42:56:05
Denis
Totally is.

00:42:56:07 - 00:43:18:17
Denis
It makes me think. Actually, I was, recently listening to the, the an older episode with, where Max, did, Denali, and I was, like, listening to the story, and and I was like, oh, listen to the Alex, side of the story. When he falls through the crevasse, you know? And I was like, man, this is like, so gnarly.

00:43:18:17 - 00:43:22:11
Denis
I was like, me and my boulders. I was like, this is still nothing, you know? It was like.

00:43:22:14 - 00:43:23:14
Denis
I was listening to the.

00:43:23:14 - 00:43:25:25
Denis
Whole story and both sides of the story. And I was like.

00:43:25:25 - 00:43:27:18
Denis
This is, this is nuts.

00:43:27:18 - 00:43:48:11
Denis
Like, I was like, you know, and and it's funny because, like, this is the type of, adventures I would like to do. And maybe eventually, like, I would do something like that. But that would be when, like, one of my kids want to do something like that, you know, then then I would like I would be all in.

00:43:48:14 - 00:43:56:24
Denis
Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Not sure my wife would like that. Yeah. Yeah. But if that's something they're into.

00:43:56:25 - 00:44:27:14
Denis
You know, like, and that's something they want to do. You know, obviously, I think they, they talked about it in, these episodes as well. But you take all the, the necessary steps to try to make it as, safe as possible, and you try to make the sound decisions that you can to make it as safe as possible, but just the whole the whole adventure and going out in the mountains, like that is, yeah, it's definitely something that I would, I would love to do at some point.

00:44:27:17 - 00:44:32:01
Denis
But not right now.

00:44:32:03 - 00:44:37:26
Denis
6 in 4.

00:44:37:28 - 00:44:38:09
Denis
Yeah.

00:44:38:09 - 00:44:44:18
Denis
Yeah, exactly. Yeah. It's definitely there's there's there's definitely times where it's not as fun.

00:44:44:20 - 00:44:46:23
Denis
But, you know, for the most part, you know. Yeah.

00:44:46:23 - 00:45:02:11
Denis
Enjoy every moment. And, it is fun. And, you know, they're getting into sports and stuff. So they do enjoy, doing a bit of climbing and, so they enjoy doing that. So hopefully, hopefully that carries through and, we can do some together later on. Right.

00:45:02:11 - 00:45:34:17
Denis
So.

00:45:34:20 - 00:45:37:26
Denis
Yeah.

00:45:37:28 - 00:45:54:00
Denis
Yeah. Like, I, I try like, I grew up, doing a lot of different sports. So that's kind of what I try to, to do is I try to get them the, the skate, play soccer, play hockey, you know, climb, you know, do.

00:45:54:02 - 00:45:54:08
Denis
A.

00:45:54:08 - 00:46:14:05
Denis
Whole bunch of different sports and probably sports that I've never done as well. Like, lacrosse is like very, like pretty big out here, which never was when I was growing up out east, in Quebec. So maybe we'll get them to do that, you know, try to just try a whole bunch of different sports and let them decide what they, what they want.

00:46:14:05 - 00:46:35:14
Denis
But, you know, obviously, they, you know, when I was showing clips of the film on TV to try to see, like, is that is that good or not? They, they really enjoy watching me. It's like, oh, it's pep, climbing, you know, the they enjoy watching that. So hopefully, you know, that that does get them interested in at least in the mountains somehow.

00:46:35:17 - 00:46:58:18
Denis
Right. But it's definitely something I, I'm very mindful of that I, I try not to push anything onto them, but to me they have to do some form of sports, like they have to like. That's whatever it is. I don't really care. But they have to do something and they have to play outdoors. They have to, you know, that's that's.

00:46:58:21 - 00:47:04:17
Denis
Yeah, exactly it exactly. They love band aids, you know?

00:47:04:20 - 00:47:05:11
Denis
Yeah.

00:47:05:13 - 00:47:07:02
Denis
Even when there's no scratch, it's.

00:47:07:02 - 00:47:20:22
Denis
Like, give me a Band-Aid. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. So.

00:47:20:24 - 00:47:33:12
Denis
Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, yeah. Oh. I wonder why you like climbing more. Yeah. Yeah.

00:47:33:12 - 00:47:48:09
Kyle
plans for kids on on my, my timeline. But, I could see that being, a delicate balance, for sure. And also something that could be so rewarding, to have, someone like that be a climbing partner. After a

00:47:49:07 - 00:47:50:11
Denis
Yeah. Yeah, I.

00:47:50:11 - 00:48:12:01
Denis
Think, yeah, looking forward to it. Like I said, if if it's not climbing, like, whatever they do, like, you know, I, I did speed skating when I was, when I was young, and then, my son started to speed skate, now. So, like, I try to do it with them a little bit as well. You know, I started speed skating again, just, just to be more with them and enjoy the sports they're doing.

00:48:12:01 - 00:48:13:14
Denis
So.

00:48:13:16 - 00:48:13:27
Denis
So.

00:48:13:27 - 00:48:28:12
Denis
Hopefully there's some climbing in there, but we'll see what they, what they want to do. But, you know, having climbing walls and I built a, like a small one for, their bedroom when they were young kids. So like, you know, having those.

00:48:28:14 - 00:48:32:02
Denis
Yeah.

00:48:32:04 - 00:48:37:25
Denis
Yeah, exactly. So.

00:48:37:27 - 00:48:39:10
Denis
Yeah, yeah. So they.

00:48:39:10 - 00:49:04:09
Denis
They, they enjoy that. And, that also helps with, with training, right, to be able to keep up. Like the closest gym for me is like 30 minutes. So that's also why I climb outside most of the time. Because, you know, I can get faster to outdoor boulders than to the gym. But,

00:49:04:12 - 00:49:09:00
Denis
Yeah, exactly. So.

00:49:09:16 - 00:49:33:08
Kyle
I'd say a lot of us, you know, myself included, when we're climbing and, and kind of getting to the sport injury is, unfortunately, kind of a part of the sport. I'd say for some of us, there are some of those few lucky people who, somehow go their entire climbing career without an injury. But it doesn't sound like you're one of them.

00:49:33:10 - 00:49:33:15
Kyle
Tell

00:49:34:11 - 00:49:39:20
Denis
Unfortunately not. No. I had a good, Yeah, I had a good ten year, ten year run.

00:49:39:20 - 00:49:41:27
Denis
Pretty much. So.

00:49:41:29 - 00:50:01:02
Denis
But, yeah, I, I ruptured, tendon in my bicep, back in October. Now, so. Yeah, that was. Yeah, exactly. I'm just getting back, getting back into it. So we pretty much wrapped up the film and, and I did.

00:50:01:02 - 00:50:03:25
Denis
It as,

00:50:03:27 - 00:50:29:16
Denis
Just, climbing, bouldering on, it's like a pretty overhanging boulder. There's like a roof that you have to climb and or sort of jump out of. And you're going from, from a pretty big under cling on your right hand and it's hard to remember off the top because, you know, it happens so fast, but I think a foot slipped and I tried to, hold myself.

00:50:29:16 - 00:50:37:17
Denis
And as I was pulling back, and trying to stay on the wall, then that's when, the tandem.

00:50:37:20 - 00:50:38:16
Denis
Just.

00:50:38:19 - 00:50:47:15
Denis
Ruptured and and,

00:50:47:18 - 00:51:12:14
Denis
I was one of them. Because I think that's why it was confusing, to the doctor at first because, like, the the tendon, ruptured. And it was, like, caught in that other tissue that's attaching there. I forget the name for it, but, because my bicep didn't fully curl back up now. Exactly. So. So that's why I was.

00:51:12:17 - 00:51:13:28
Denis
Yeah.

00:51:14:01 - 00:51:29:29
Denis
Exactly. So the tendon was caught in the other, the other one or some. Something like that. Anyways, so it didn't it didn't curl all the way up. So my, my buddy that I was, bouldering with is, paramedic. And he was like, oh, I don't think it's, full rupture. I was like, I hope not.

00:51:29:29 - 00:51:32:07
Denis
And then.

00:51:32:10 - 00:51:38:28
Denis
Test it out. Right after. Right. As a good climber, you know, you test it out and,

00:51:39:00 - 00:51:40:17
Denis
And like, I couldn't pull on it.

00:51:40:17 - 00:51:48:06
Denis
I could hold, I could hold fine. Like, there was no problem. It was still a bit sensitive, obviously, but I couldn't pull on it.

00:51:49:23 - 00:52:08:18
Denis
And because it didn't curl up like I saw the doctor right away, and he was like, I don't think it's, full rupture. And and so I did, some acupuncture and some physio as well, right away. And after maybe a month, I was like, looking in the mirror. I'm looking at my two biceps. The length.

00:52:08:20 - 00:52:09:01
Denis
Still.

00:52:09:01 - 00:52:32:05
Denis
Doesn't look right, doesn't feel right. You know, it doesn't hurt. Like the pain goes away because it's a full rupture. So, and then, and then ended up, who I talked to. Yeah. My physio requested an ultra ultrasound. And then at the ultrasound, the guy was like, yeah, it's fully rupture. He's like, I've done this for 30 years.

00:52:32:05 - 00:52:37:10
Denis
I just saw two other guys before you. Same thing. You know, like full rupture. He's like.

00:52:37:16 - 00:52:42:26
Denis
It's like like, crap.

00:52:42:28 - 00:52:44:03
Denis
The full.

00:52:44:05 - 00:52:49:05
Denis
The full tendon. It's the one that goes. That wraps around to the top of your forearm.

00:52:49:05 - 00:52:55:14
Denis
I want to say, I think. Because. Because you have. Yeah.

00:52:55:14 - 00:53:06:23
Denis
Yeah, yeah, I have I had, so yeah, it happened October 3rd and then I had surgery, December or. Yeah, December 11th.

00:53:06:26 - 00:53:09:11
Denis
So yeah, just.

00:53:09:11 - 00:53:16:09
Kyle
getting on it. Because I've heard those ones are really a bitch to repair. If you wait a long time because of all the atrophy.

00:53:16:09 - 00:53:27:23
Denis
Yeah, yeah. So while so that's one thing, I think it was pretty fast, but maybe because I had done also already a bunch of, things to try to recover fast.

00:53:29:05 - 00:53:57:00
Denis
So the tendon was really close to where it was supposed to be. And, and the surgeon was like, I don't think I'll need more tendon pieces to, put it back together. But he said, if we need it, we need it in your knee. It's the same one that they take if you have, ACL, torn, torn ACL, and then, woke up and actually they had to take the tendon in my knee as well, so.

00:53:57:02 - 00:53:58:03
Denis
So the early.

00:53:58:03 - 00:54:17:00
Denis
Recovery was actually worse for my leg than my arm because my arms, like, you know, it's it doesn't move. It's, you know, you're not doing anything with it. So, but my, my leg, I didn't think because the surgeon was also like, yeah, you'll be fine. You just walk and the. And so I didn't then lift my leg.

00:54:17:00 - 00:54:24:21
Denis
I didn't do much. And then like two, three days in my, my legs like fully swollen and like having a hard time walking on it like.

00:54:24:24 - 00:54:25:07
Denis
Oh, yeah, I.

00:54:25:07 - 00:54:27:08
Denis
Guess I should lift it up. You know, I.

00:54:27:08 - 00:54:29:24
Denis
Should, keep, so I was.

00:54:29:24 - 00:54:42:29
Denis
It was harder on my leg than than my arm, actually. But, but yeah. Did you know, followed the physio and, you know, the first, the first month or two is, kind of hard because you're not doing much, but.

00:54:43:01 - 00:54:44:04
Denis
Just start.

00:54:44:06 - 00:54:54:09
Denis
So I just started to, go back outside and be able to, climb on rocks again. So. So this feels good. Feels good. So.

00:54:54:11 - 00:54:54:21
Denis
Yeah.

00:54:54:23 - 00:54:56:02
Denis
Had a good ten year, but.

00:54:56:02 - 00:55:03:06
Denis
Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. So.

00:55:03:28 - 00:55:19:04
Kyle
Damn, that sucks, man. Sorry to hear it. It seems like you're in good spirits about it, though. A lot of us get pretty devastated after stuff like that. It doesn't seem like it was like a traumatic injury, though. More of just like a sports injury or it's more frustrating than anything else.

00:55:19:12 - 00:55:38:05
Denis
Yeah, exactly. It's more like, having to take, backburner as especially when you have a couple, a couple of different projects, you're like, you're getting close on and I was, like, getting close on a couple, climbs that I was like, hoping to finish before, before winter or whatever. And just like that happened, and I was like.

00:55:38:05 - 00:55:40:16
Denis
Oh, crap, you know, shit.

00:55:40:18 - 00:55:41:27
Denis
It's going to have to wait, you know?

00:55:41:27 - 00:55:43:25
Denis
So I wanted.

00:55:43:25 - 00:56:12:24
Kyle
a good a good balance, so that I talk about a lot in the show is finding like a good everyone talks about work life balance. I almost find like climbing life balance is something that goes overlooked. It's like it's so it's so easy for us to be just absolutely just absorbed by the sport of climbing and when we get into those minor states, when injuries like this happen where you can't climb anymore, it can get really devastating really quick and it can be really poor for our mental health.

00:56:12:27 - 00:56:30:21
Kyle
So I think it's cool that, you know, you're a nice example of of somebody who's got diversification. You have family, you have kids, you've got a, you know, career. You have, you know, focuses in your life so that when you know, you tear your bicep on a project and you can't climb for six months, you're you're not, on suicide watch, as it were.

00:56:30:21 - 00:56:31:28
Denis
Yeah, exactly.

00:56:32:01 - 00:56:59:06
Denis
I think, I think the the other thing is, you know, obviously is never a good time for an injury to happen. You know, you just hope that it never happens. But, But what I guess what help, too, is the, you know, we wrapped up the, the film and, we had, like, a premiere event in December and, and from that, like, actually, the night before I had surgery, we had, our premiere event and,

00:56:59:09 - 00:57:02:01
Denis
Yeah. And then.

00:57:02:03 - 00:57:27:22
Denis
After that, like, I started showing it and, bunch of, high schools and, you know, there's a lot of things that came from from having the film out as well. And, and then I had the Q guide as well to, to finish for the Fraser Canyon. So, there was still like, you know, climbing related things happening, just not the climbing itself.

00:57:27:25 - 00:57:31:08
Denis
So that was still fun to be able to.

00:57:31:11 - 00:57:31:28
Denis
Yeah.

00:57:32:01 - 00:57:38:16
Denis
Yeah, it's still fun to be able to to do that while recovering. Right. So.

00:57:38:19 - 00:57:40:02
Denis
Yeah.

00:57:40:07 - 00:57:59:03
Kyle
Well nice dude. Let's let's dive into kind of back into the Fraser Canyon back into these, these specific areas. And let's talk about kind of this development process for each one. So I'm just going to go chronologically, you know, as the way it is in the film. You know, for anybody listening, you know, obviously check out the film.

00:57:59:03 - 00:57:59:11
Kyle
That's what

00:58:00:08 - 00:58:08:21
Denis
Yes, sir.

00:58:08:23 - 00:58:16:24
Denis
It is. Yeah. Yeah.

00:58:16:26 - 00:58:19:07
Denis
Yeah.

00:58:19:07 - 00:58:23:14
Kyle
talk to me about that. Is that an annual,

00:58:23:16 - 00:58:25:05
Kyle
Upkeep?

00:58:25:07 - 00:58:29:06
Kyle
Talking about the area. What kind of climbing? What's got you psyched about Gold Rush?

00:58:30:22 - 00:58:37:24
Kyle
If you've been enjoying the show, please like, subscribe and share this podcast with your friends. Word of mouth is one of the best ways to

00:58:39:11 - 00:58:39:26
Denis
While Gold.

00:58:39:26 - 00:58:54:29
Denis
Rush is the initial place. So it's kind of. Why is. Well, we put it first in the film is like the first. The first place that I started to develop when I was, like, basically the only one, going into the canyon until I had a couple friends that started to come out.

00:58:56:15 - 00:58:58:24
Denis
That's also why, like, I think.

00:58:58:26 - 00:58:59:20
Denis
I, I want.

00:58:59:20 - 00:59:06:27
Denis
To say all the climbs in the gold rush is, climbs that I did because it's it's pretty much all climbs I did in that area.

00:59:10:07 - 00:59:18:18
Denis
And yeah, there's a lot of cleaning, but in a way, like the first time, it's not as bad as the Fraser Valley.

00:59:18:21 - 00:59:21:09
Denis
And I think because.

00:59:21:12 - 00:59:33:24
Denis
Because it rains just as much, but I think maybe because of the wind. So like, a lot of, you know, that dust that would settle on the rock doesn't tend to stay on there. That's my analysis of it anyways.

00:59:33:24 - 00:59:34:28
Denis
So.

00:59:35:00 - 00:59:46:05
Denis
So, so far, like when I've gone back to some of the climb we've established like four years ago, I haven't had too much to clean. Other than the boulders that we haven't cleaned yet.

00:59:47:27 - 01:00:12:22
Denis
It's more like, a bit of trail maintenance. Again, I think because, because of the when, branches fall on some of the trails and, there's a bit of cleaning that way. But so far it hasn't been, as bad as some of the areas in the Fraser Valley, I'd say for, keeping the, you know, keeping it up to snuff and, like, being able to use the area.

01:00:12:22 - 01:00:32:23
Denis
So, so that's been really good. But, the really the big, the big one and, it's too bad because we had didn't have time to, put the full line. But if you remember, a bank ring, Rufio, like, it does finish out and top out. But we didn't have time to, to finish recording it.

01:00:32:26 - 01:00:33:18
Denis
Just.

01:00:33:21 - 01:00:55:29
Denis
End of day trying to get it all in, and it just didn't work out, but, it's it's a really interesting climb because there's a little bit of, everything, like you have, like, big jugs under clings. You have, you have finger cracks, you have hand jam, you have like, crimps, you know, you have like, finicky toe placement.

01:00:55:29 - 01:01:14:21
Denis
So there's a lot of variety in that climb. And when I first saw that boulder, that's the one that made me go like, oh, like, this is, this is this is big. This is this got lots, you know, that that that was the one that really got me to be like, okay, like I'm coming back, you know.

01:01:17:06 - 01:01:21:04
Denis
Bangor ang Rufio is, rated it as, v9.

01:01:22:13 - 01:01:26:00
Denis
There's no one else has done it yet. So.

01:01:26:02 - 01:01:27:25
Denis
We'll see.

01:01:34:07 - 01:01:40:19
Denis
Yeah.

01:01:40:21 - 01:01:45:04
Denis
It is. Yeah. I think I think.

01:01:45:04 - 01:02:01:29
Denis
For the most part I'm fairly accurate. I think I like before I give it a grade, usually because I don't like giving like grade, like there's sometimes you'll see like, V67. Yeah. And I, I don't like it. So like, I'm.

01:02:01:29 - 01:02:02:09
Denis
I'm.

01:02:02:16 - 01:02:19:12
Denis
I try to come up with like the one that makes the most sense, obviously based on what I've seen before and what's out in that specific area and, but I, but I've heard from a couple of friends that it might be a little stiff.

01:02:20:09 - 01:02:26:21
Denis
Migrating. So, you know, so some of the, the climbs may might be a bit sandbagged.

01:02:28:00 - 01:02:30:21
Kyle
So it's harder than you've rated it, potentially.

01:02:31:03 - 01:02:33:12
Denis
Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

01:02:33:12 - 01:02:38:03
Kyle
from what I've heard, as a developer, you want to be known as stiff and not soft.

01:02:38:15 - 01:02:38:27
Denis
Yeah.

01:02:38:27 - 01:03:01:13
Denis
I like I tried to be like, you know, it's it's it's always hard because it always depends on your style of climbing, you know, because, like, some of the climbs, I'm, I'm obviously like, I've rated, certain grade and I'm like, well, honestly, this one is like, so high dependent that it's like someone that six foot is going to it's going to be way easier than what I graded it.

01:03:01:13 - 01:03:08:13
Denis
And someone that's like five foot tall or five foot two is it. It's going to be way harder than what I agree with it.

01:03:08:14 - 01:03:14:07
Denis
So exactly right. So you know.

01:03:14:09 - 01:03:58:08
Denis
There's just some climbs that are like that. But for the most part, I think, I think I'm, I'm pretty pretty accurate in my opinion. Anyways.

01:04:03:23 - 01:04:31:13
Denis
It's really the, the whole adventure, you know, like, a little bit like we were talking about, Denali. You know, you, you know. Yes. People have done the, Denali before, but it's so rugged, so different that, like, you know, depending on the season, I'm sure it's it's it varies a lot. So it's not like you get the beta from someone and just like, just do this and you'll you'll be up the Denali, you know.

01:04:31:15 - 01:04:33:13
Denis
So, a bit.

01:04:33:16 - 01:04:58:21
Denis
The same thing with, bouldering. You know, obviously it's not as extreme, but, when you go out and, you know, nobody's done it, there's, there's that whole aspect of let's see what I can make, out of this and the whole adventure of like it, you know? Yeah, it's a lot of work, you know, making some of the the trails and maintaining them and cleaning the boulders.

01:04:58:21 - 01:05:15:27
Denis
And when you do this, you're not climbing. So. But I don't really want to just digest climbing, I just like, I want, I want the whole experience, you know, I want I want the whole thing, you know?

01:05:16:00 - 01:05:18:11
Denis
Yeah. I just don't want,

01:05:18:14 - 01:05:22:02
Denis
You know, if it's like, fast food or you can make your own burger, you know, like.

01:05:22:04 - 01:05:28:02
Denis
A. Yeah, it's, So,

01:05:28:04 - 01:05:51:07
Denis
So, yeah, it's it's that's that's really why it's just I want to. Yeah, I find I get more of a connection with the climbing and where with where I'm climbing than if I just go to a boulder, do the send it, and then move on to the next boulder. I just find I it develops. Yeah. Just a relationship.

01:05:51:09 - 01:05:52:11
Denis
Yeah. Totally.

01:05:52:17 - 01:05:59:21
Denis
Totally.

01:05:59:23 - 01:06:00:06
Denis
Yeah.

01:06:00:06 - 01:06:05:12
Denis
Yeah, exactly. So, yeah, I enjoy the whole process. It's a lot of fun to me.

01:06:05:12 - 01:06:15:22
Denis
So, yeah.

01:06:15:24 - 01:06:39:15
Denis
Gold Beach is, right across from, Gold Rush. It's, you know, one of the times I was out there, I was, I was, you know, trying to climb in, and I heard a car come by, and there's rarely ever anyone there, so I was, like, curious. I walked, I walked around, I went to see, and I saw a fisherman go across the the highway.

01:06:39:15 - 01:06:58:16
Denis
So when I was done my session, I went to check it out and I was like, I saw like some pretty nice boulders and some like from up top because it's like down from a cliff, you can see the whole beach. And, I was like, this is pretty sick, but like, it was like middle of winter, so is rainy.

01:06:58:22 - 01:07:19:06
Denis
Everything was wet. So I was like, I'll go check it out later, when it's not rainy. And then the next time I checked it out, there was like the water level was high. So, like the whole mountain. I don't know if you remember the shot in the film, but the big mountain that you see, when, when the, when the, when it pans out over the beach, like I'm standing by it.

01:07:19:06 - 01:07:40:07
Denis
I don't know if you remember that shot, but I'm standing by the cliff side, basically, and you can see the whole beach and you see the big mount, the Rock mountains and, that whole mountain is, like, halfway into water. So, like, the whole beach disappears. So then I was like, okay, well, I'll wait till the water comes down, you know, to be able to check it out.

01:07:40:07 - 01:07:59:07
Denis
And then, late that summer, a bunch of friends that, that climb, that are closer to Vancouver, I kept bugging them that come out. And finally they did. And so there's a bunch of us climbing in at Gold Rush, and I was like, yeah, there's like other boulders there, but like, the water has been high.

01:07:59:07 - 01:08:01:10
Denis
So,

01:08:01:12 - 01:08:15:29
Denis
We're kind of taking a break. And, one of my buddies, Eric, that's in the film as well, he decided to, take a walk, and he's he comes back and he's like, there's no water. You can see the beach, like, let's go, you know, and then, we're like, oh, sick. Like let's.

01:08:15:29 - 01:08:16:13
Denis
Let's go.

01:08:16:13 - 01:08:26:06
Denis
Check it out. So we get out there and we're just like kids in a sandbox. Like we were just like, well, you know, we're like, running around on the sand. We're like, well, I look at this, look at this.

01:08:26:06 - 01:08:28:06
Denis
Like, this is pretty fun.

01:08:28:07 - 01:08:41:06
Denis
You know? It's like, just just having a good old time on, on the beach. So it's pretty cool. And, Yeah, the the climb so far, there's there's more. There's a lot more to be done. There is still, is still very,

01:08:41:29 - 01:08:50:24
Denis
You know, there's not tons that's been done, but, one of the first ones we did there, was Eric did it. It's called, beauty and the beach.

01:08:50:27 - 01:08:51:29
Denis
Sorry.

01:08:52:02 - 01:09:13:06
Denis
It's, it's a V6, but it's like a super fun, super fun movie. Super, nice, like Dino to a nice jogging and, just a nice, nice climb. So it's probably one of the, top V6 in the Fraser Valley, I would say. So it's, and it's just like, yeah, you're on the beach, you're.

01:09:13:08 - 01:09:15:17
Denis
Just super nice. Just.

01:09:15:19 - 01:09:24:00
Denis
Yeah, exactly, exactly.

01:09:24:02 - 01:09:34:20
Denis
No. So I was trying to read about it, and, I think it depends where you're, you are in in the canyon. The stuff that's on the beach. I have a hard time.

01:09:34:23 - 01:09:36:19
Denis
I'm.

01:09:36:22 - 01:09:47:12
Denis
Saying, like what it is because it's it's not granite. From what I've read, a lot of the stuff in the, canyons is like Custer. Nice is the type of rock.

01:09:48:20 - 01:09:55:22
Denis
But I don't think that that's what it is. So I would need someone that's more experienced.

01:09:55:24 - 01:10:02:03
Denis
Be able,

01:10:02:05 - 01:10:29:16
Denis
It varies. Because if you go on the mountain, it's it's very nice. It's more like basalt type texture, but it's not as like it doesn't feel like it's going to break like basalt. You know, it feels very solid. And maybe it's just from, like, the river, you know, chiseling the rock, basically, you know, taking everything that's going to break, you know, before we even get to it.

01:10:29:16 - 01:10:36:17
Denis
So, but then you have some of the other boulders that are very, very textured.

01:10:38:29 - 01:11:02:14
Denis
And maybe that's from the, the mass that kind of attaches itself to the rock, which sort of builds all these little, crevasses into, like, tiny crevices in the, in the rock. And then there's others that are, like, feel very granite, like, so there's, there's quite the difference in texture, but like, everything is like, super solid.

01:11:04:03 - 01:11:12:20
Denis
It's just. Yeah, depending on the boulders, some that like, rips your rips your skin apart and there's some that are super nice on the skin. So.

01:11:12:21 - 01:11:19:18
Denis
Yeah.

01:11:19:21 - 01:11:45:15
Denis
Well, so that's the interesting part is like, the mountain is very is very it's not super polished, but it's like, it's like nice and comfortable on the on the fingers, on the hands. But then some of the other boulders that are closer to, to the edge, basically to the, to the beach, they're more textured and they're rougher for the most part.

01:11:45:17 - 01:11:46:13
Denis
Yeah.

01:11:46:15 - 01:12:11:00
Denis
And then you have some, in it, and those are probably because they were under sand for forever. But like, we had a big flood. I don't know if you've heard about it in the news where you are, but we had a big flood in 2021, so that changed a lot. The shape of the beach that we have there, and then some of the boulders that were under sand got uncovered.

01:12:11:00 - 01:12:41:29
Denis
So it made brand new boulders for us to have fun on. And those ones I like super nice, super comfortable, but they're, they're not polished because they haven't been, you know, by the water all this time. And they're not like, rough because they also haven't had like that moss growing on it and whatnot. So so they're super comfortable and they're more like granite feel, but I'm not sure if it is so.

01:12:42:01 - 01:12:44:21
Denis
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

01:12:44:23 - 01:12:45:11
Denis
Super cool.

01:12:45:11 - 01:12:50:27
Denis
Yeah.

01:12:50:29 - 01:12:52:21
Denis
Alkalosis is, how I.

01:12:52:21 - 01:12:53:22
Denis
Yeah, yeah, I.

01:12:53:22 - 01:12:54:20
Denis
Think that's how you say it.

01:12:54:20 - 01:12:58:03
Denis
Yeah. So that one.

01:12:58:03 - 01:13:10:11
Denis
Was, Alex. I think it was, came across, another local, I forget where exactly, but, and then he kind of hinted him at.

01:13:11:04 - 01:13:32:22
Denis
These other boulders down. So that's down the old highway. So you have to drive down, further closer to. Yeah. And, you have to take the old highway. It's rugged, big going down there, but, yeah, you get to the end of the old highway or that piece of the old highway, and, there's that massive, just massive boulders.

01:13:32:22 - 01:13:43:15
Denis
So, Alex found it, with the help of, one of the locals, I guess. And, and, yeah, it's just a massive just a.

01:13:43:18 - 01:13:44:05
Denis
I don't know.

01:13:44:05 - 01:13:45:29
Denis
I don't know how it formed by, like, it's.

01:13:45:29 - 01:13:47:15
Denis
Just. Yeah.

01:13:47:17 - 01:13:50:25
Denis
It's it's huge.

01:13:50:27 - 01:13:55:20
Denis
Yeah.

01:13:55:22 - 01:13:58:12
Denis
Yeah, it.

01:13:58:12 - 01:14:11:01
Denis
Is very gnarly. And you can see like, if you see, like. So when you're looking at, Aphrodite, and like the first two climbs in that, in that part of the film.

01:14:12:24 - 01:14:27:08
Denis
The one side is like very polished. You can see that the water is like, polished, that side you can see like it's very, very, very smooth. And in fact, like when you're getting there and you're trying to traverse for, what's called the alkalosis climb.

01:14:28:21 - 01:14:43:24
Denis
It's it. Yeah. It becomes very hard to, to hold on to things because it's so polished. But you go on the, on that front side, where you see those, the V3 up there, the the super tall V3, actually. And.

01:14:46:05 - 01:14:55:12
Denis
It's very like. Yeah, blocky. You have like, big jugs and like solid rock there too. But it's not polished like the other side.

01:14:55:12 - 01:15:01:02
Denis
So,

01:15:01:04 - 01:15:04:29
Denis
Yeah, yeah, yeah, but that's.

01:15:04:29 - 01:15:15:25
Kyle
prow. I was I was watching the video, and I was like, I saw a climb and it, like, went out to the right. I was like, that's not what I was expecting. And I saw a client, like, went out to the left and I was like, who's

01:15:17:25 - 01:15:19:14
Kyle
boom, like Aphrodite V

01:15:19:27 - 01:15:20:25
Denis
Yeah.

01:15:20:25 - 01:15:25:26
Kyle
there. I was like, yeah, there it is. Like so sick. Like that was that was definitely like the most prominent

01:15:26:13 - 01:15:27:24
Denis
Yeah.

01:15:27:24 - 01:15:31:25
Kyle
the, the ki route on that rock that I was like, I was like, I need

01:15:33:08 - 01:15:35:27
Denis
Yeah, it definitely is. Yeah, yeah.

01:15:35:27 - 01:15:58:23
Denis
I think Nick was pretty psyched when he did that one. It's definitely, one of the, the most, I don't know, perfect line in the canyon for sure. It's definitely, it's got the move. It's got the holds. It's got, it's got the beauty aspect to it. It's got the high two. Like, you're getting pretty high once you get above the prowl.

01:15:58:23 - 01:16:03:06
Denis
So, Yeah, I'd.

01:16:03:06 - 01:16:05:29
Denis
Say. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, you're.

01:16:06:01 - 01:16:20:25
Denis
You're getting pretty, pretty out there. And you need a lot of pads because, like, the prowl, like, goes pretty far out. So you're starting pretty far into below the prowl, and then you're going pretty far out. So you need a decent amount of, of, pads.

01:16:20:25 - 01:16:23:10
Kyle
and people to move them to be underneath you. Right.

01:16:23:22 - 01:16:24:04
Denis
Yeah.

01:16:24:04 - 01:16:42:08
Denis
So like, so that's, that's one that I was trying to, finish before I got injured. You know, I had like 2 or 3 sessions on it, and, but every time was by myself, so, like, you know, trying, trying to do the prowl and I'm like, like and trying to check where my pads are, too.

01:16:42:08 - 01:16:43:02
Denis
At the same time.

01:16:43:02 - 01:16:45:03
Denis
You know, so I had.

01:16:45:04 - 01:17:05:19
Denis
I had once, once where I grabbed the, the one of the last hold and then, my foot slipped and swung out and, I kind of just like. Because you're like, you know, pretty unders. Like, I took a big swing out, and I came, like, just off the pad, and. And I came like, just like a cat, you know?

01:17:05:19 - 01:17:08:12
Denis
I was like.

01:17:08:15 - 01:17:14:02
Denis
Oh. I'm okay, I'm okay. I was like, okay.

01:17:14:04 - 01:17:16:20
Denis
I'll put my pads out a little bit more then next time.

01:17:16:20 - 01:17:21:03
Denis
So yeah, so, but.

01:17:21:03 - 01:17:28:04
Kyle
risk factor when you start getting higher up on those boulders. It's not that, it's not that hard to, to absolutely devastate your

01:17:29:07 - 01:17:29:19
Denis
Yeah.

01:17:29:20 - 01:17:51:14
Denis
And it's a bit, tality. Like there, like, the landing is definitely like, you know, it's not ideal, but it's, you know, still easy to protect. It's not, like, uneven, really. But it's just like, you still got a place. Your back is like. Yeah, if you come off the pad. Yeah, it would be easy to, break an ankle or something.

01:17:51:14 - 01:17:55:24
Denis
So I was like, when I, when I hit it flat, I was like.

01:17:57:03 - 01:18:01:23
Denis
I was like, I missed that one. I was like, I'm so glad nothing else happened.

01:18:01:23 - 01:18:03:20
Denis
Like this came.

01:18:03:20 - 01:18:06:19
Denis
Off the pads just flat and nothing.

01:18:06:19 - 01:18:11:08
Denis
Saw. I was like, perfect.

01:18:11:10 - 01:18:13:14
Denis
No. Exactly, exactly.

01:18:13:14 - 01:18:18:26
Denis
So, yeah.

01:18:18:28 - 01:18:45:21
Denis
Solid creek. Still seeing, a lot of, development. That's where we spend most of our time. Lately, I think that's the one that has the most, concentration of Boulder. There's, there's some really big ones, down at the lowest part in the beach. And, there's still a lot in the forest that we practically haven't touched yet.

01:18:45:24 - 01:18:50:13
Denis
And, Yeah, it's it's.

01:18:50:16 - 01:18:58:06
Denis
Yeah, it's the, the area that has the most. And there's like two beaches at that spot too. There's like, another beach, like.

01:18:58:09 - 01:18:59:03
Denis
Like,

01:18:59:06 - 01:19:25:15
Denis
You saw in the film, like the last shot, you can see the 4 or 5 different climbs that were on, and there's another beach as well beside it, with more boulders and, yeah, like in the film, we didn't put anything in the forest because we hadn't done anything in the forest really at that point. So, yeah, it's probably the, the, the biggest area of the Fraser Canyon so far.

01:19:25:15 - 01:19:39:24
Denis
There's like there's like 2 or 3 other areas that we know of, up and down the canyon that we haven't done anything, yet. We just know they're there. But, you know, there's so many boulders like, it's we just can't do them all, you know?

01:19:39:24 - 01:19:41:23
Denis
So, but.

01:19:41:23 - 01:19:59:03
Denis
Yeah, it's, you know, Ackles has the, probably the nicest boulder and sawmill would have probably the highest quantity and, most variety. And then.

01:20:00:23 - 01:20:19:08
Denis
Gold Beach has, like, like a really, really nice beach. And, there's a lot of, like, on the other side of the mountain. It there's a lot of, like, polished, polished boulders. That would be really cool to climb that we haven't done yet. But, yeah, sawmill, I'd say is.

01:20:19:08 - 01:20:20:09
Denis
Is.

01:20:20:11 - 01:20:24:13
Denis
Probably the best one. I would say, out of the four areas.

01:20:24:17 - 01:20:26:02
Denis
So yeah.

01:20:26:02 - 01:20:29:29
Denis
Really cool climbs, really cool rocks, big rocks and.

01:20:30:04 - 01:20:34:07
Denis
Yeah, super fun. Yeah. Yeah.

01:20:34:08 - 01:20:35:16
Denis
Exactly.

01:20:35:16 - 01:20:45:29
Kyle
So tell me about this film. What was the precipice for putting this on camera? Getting it out there and and kind of sharing it with the world.

01:20:46:10 - 01:21:14:10
Denis
Well, like I said, before, like, you know, when I, when I first started to climb there, it, it was really, Yeah. Have, blank canvas and like, just have, like, so much choice to climb. I can pick, you know, I can pick anything I can climb and as, as a few, a few of the others, like, one of my friend Justin, I like snake, like the guys in the film is starting to come out to, you know, started to develop more different areas.

01:21:14:10 - 01:21:14:23
Denis
And I'm like.

01:21:14:23 - 01:21:16:02
Denis
Man, this.

01:21:16:04 - 01:21:29:14
Denis
Is so much here. Like, I can't do it all. Like, you know, I can't. There's not enough lifetime to do it all. And even if there's like 5 or 6 of us that go out, there's still not enough lifetime to do it all.

01:21:29:17 - 01:21:31:09
Denis
And,

01:21:31:12 - 01:21:51:12
Denis
And it's partly because of what we see in the Fraser Valley that I wanted to share. The Fraser Canyon, because I feel like if I had done a film like, yes, there's really good climbs, there's really nice climbs, in the Fraser Valley, that would be worth going to.

01:21:51:15 - 01:21:52:24
Denis
But I don't think.

01:21:52:26 - 01:22:06:01
Denis
I don't think that's what would, drive someone from Vancouver to come and try it, you know, and maybe that would drive one or 2 or 3 person the common climate, but, you know, not more than that.

01:22:08:05 - 01:22:48:24
Denis
And after developing the canyon for, for a while, I was like, man, we have something that's so nice here. I think that's what would drive people to maybe not even make it all the way to the canyon, but to come at least come check out the Fraser Valley and come try some of the climbs out here. And like I said, develop, more of a community and, try to, to get a little bit more traffic, obviously, like, the goal is not to make it a highly trafficked area, but just to get, you know, more people on the boulders, keep them clean, help maintain the trails, help promote climbing in the Fraser Valley.

01:22:48:26 - 01:23:13:06
Denis
And, yeah, it's really, I think, just trying to build a community and trying to get it out there in the Fraser Canyon, I think is something that has that power to maybe attract people out there, you know, like you watch, you watch a lot of climbing. And there's those, those places that you see on film and you're like, well, that's that's a place I'd like to go.

01:23:13:06 - 01:23:36:26
Denis
You know, it's not necessarily because the it's the hardest climb. It's not necessarily because it's the, the best climb, because it's hard to tell really how the climb is from watching it. But it's, it's a beautiful place, you know, it's often what attracts you to those places, right? So, so that's really, really why I think I wanted to, make a film.

01:23:36:26 - 01:23:56:06
Denis
We we just have something that's really beautiful. Wanted to share it with people, wanted to make it, you know, because even, like, close friends that climb all the time, like, it'd be like we'd be like, hey, come, come check it out and like, I'll come check it out and like, you know, a year goes by and they still have in common, you know, it's like.

01:23:56:09 - 01:23:58:02
Denis
So you you should really.

01:23:58:02 - 01:24:02:09
Denis
Just come and check it out. And now, like, now that you have a film to show, it's like.

01:24:02:11 - 01:24:06:01
Denis
To,

01:24:06:04 - 01:24:07:17
Denis
Exactly. Right. And it's.

01:24:07:17 - 01:24:08:04
Denis
Like, oh.

01:24:08:05 - 01:24:28:15
Denis
Like. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Maybe we should go there, you know. So, so yeah, that's that's kind of how the idea came about. And then, and then me and Jesse had talked about doing a sports film together, and, kind of traded a bit of, work with him and did some filming for events that he was doing.

01:24:28:15 - 01:24:31:11
Denis
And I was like, let's do the film. Don't, don't, don't pay me.

01:24:31:11 - 01:24:34:15
Denis
And also, and so.

01:24:34:17 - 01:24:38:10
Denis
So yeah, that's, that's kind of where the idea sprouted from.

01:24:38:16 - 01:25:02:26
Kyle
Awesome. And the. The filmmaker. What's his name? I always like to to try to give some credit to the person behind the camera. Because I also exist in that space. And, we can be so easily forgotten. We we consume so much content these days that, I don't know, a lot of us, I think kind of forget, that it's an art form and that there's someone actually shooting it, and, there's a lot of time and work into that.

01:25:02:26 - 01:25:05:18
Kyle
So, what's his name? And kind of. Where can

01:25:06:20 - 01:25:27:05
Denis
Yeah. Jesse Wheeler, that's, that's his name. He made, he filmed everything, edited the whole thing, and, Yeah, he's the one that really put it out there. Jesse, you can find him on, Instagram. Jay Wheeler photo. He's pretty, he's pretty low key, though.

01:25:27:12 - 01:25:29:13
Denis
So.

01:25:29:16 - 01:25:35:21
Denis
So, yeah, you can find him there. Jay Wheeler photo. But otherwise, that's that's that's the only place you can find them.

01:25:35:21 - 01:25:37:18
Denis
Yeah. But.

01:25:37:21 - 01:25:45:25
Denis
There's some good work, and we have, we have some ideas for, for from Warsaw. So hopefully we'll get some more done.

01:25:45:27 - 01:25:47:09
Denis
Yeah.

01:25:47:09 - 01:26:01:06
Kyle
So for somebody interested in visiting the Fraser Canyon, where can they find these roots? Are they on Mountain Project? Are they in a guidebook? Do you have plans for a guidebook? What is your vision for how people can

01:26:03:10 - 01:26:30:15
Denis
Yeah, actually, like, I, I wanted to make a guidebook first. But because there's so much development, it's like, you know, I kept thinking about it and it's like, yeah, it's nice to have a printed copy, but as soon as I would put it out, it's outdated already because we've put up, you know, 5100 more climbs and, you know, by the time it's like edited, published and out in people's hand, you know, it's like it's it's outdated.

01:26:30:15 - 01:26:55:20
Denis
So, when, when kayak came out, you know, they're, they're doing mostly bouldering, but, they're, they're doing a lot more they're starting to do, more sport climbing as well on, on the app. And just thought that, you know, it was, well made, well made app, seemed very simple to, to work with.

01:26:55:20 - 01:27:15:27
Denis
And when I first asked, to maybe do, the climbing guy for the Fraser Valley and the Fraser Canyon on the app, I think they were pretty busy. It was hard to get to, to get back to us. And then, my buddy, Nick, that's also in the film, ended up reaching out to them as well.

01:27:15:27 - 01:27:55:16
Denis
And so we started to make the, the guidebook, on kayak. So, so it's not a mountain project. There's no printed copy. The only place to, to, get access to, you know, the Fraser Canyon. Anyways, is only on kayak, Fraser Valley. There's a lot of material that's on Mountain Project. But that was also, one of the reason is, to put it on, kayak is just to have, you know, yes, you have to pay for the, for the app, but at the same time, you know, the, the only ax, the only challenge with the access is the price point, I guess, versus, like,

01:27:55:16 - 01:28:18:26
Denis
Mountain Project is free, but it still makes it, a little bit harder for, for people to access the boulder and understand what they're climbing, where they're climbing, what the trails are, what the what the parking is, and, you know, all those things. So, so Gaia's really nice to be able to, update things, really quickly, make them live and be able to get you.

01:28:18:28 - 01:28:42:16
Denis
So get you to the boulder, that you're looking for. So, so. Yeah, that's where it is now is Kiah Fraser Canyon and, Fraser Valley is also on there. So they're they're like, I don't know if you've ever use it, but they're like, oh, okay. So it's it's like, yeah, it's an app. And they're basically official guidebooks.

01:28:42:18 - 01:29:04:10
Denis
So you can access the, you know, the Squamish guidebook, you know, so if there are sort of verified areas, then like basically myself and Nick monitor the area. So like if people add climbs or whatever and we're like, no, that's not a, that's not a climb or actually this is this is not where that person said it was on the app.

01:29:04:10 - 01:29:10:21
Denis
We can we can actually tie it to the boulder it's supposed to be attached to. So it kind of makes the whole thing.

01:29:11:25 - 01:29:17:03
Denis
Less chaotic and, more streamlined and.

01:29:17:06 - 01:29:18:18
Denis
Yeah, more.

01:29:18:21 - 01:29:38:23
Denis
Like, just verified that, you know, it's, it's accurate information. So, so me and Nick kind of monitor that, that area, and we're the the guide otters. Yeah, exactly. So. Fraser Canyon.

01:29:38:26 - 01:29:40:17
Denis
I think, 100 and.

01:29:40:17 - 01:29:43:03
Denis
50 under.

01:29:43:05 - 01:29:43:23
Denis
Under.

01:29:43:25 - 01:29:59:19
Denis
Yeah. Around 150 on, on the guidebook. But we haven't put sawmill on there yet. So, I want to say will be like, probably 250 once. Once. That's on there. So.

01:29:59:19 - 01:30:00:18
Denis
So, yeah.

01:30:00:21 - 01:30:05:19
Denis
It's getting getting up there. Yeah. Yeah. It's pretty cool. It.

01:30:05:19 - 01:30:24:15
Kyle
Very cool. Very cool project you're doing. I think that, you know, tapping into these new areas and, being a steward of the land and of the sport and and kind of opening these areas not only for yourself, but for for the community is, you know, we need more, more people like you. So I appreciate the effort.

01:30:24:15 - 01:30:33:14
Kyle
And, yeah, it's really cool to to hear your story and everything. Where can people see the film? If they're interested in

01:30:34:20 - 01:30:53:02
Denis
So the the film is on. Kai is Kai is YouTube. Channel. So kayak climbing. So if you search for kayak climbing or if you search, gold rush, the nuggets they left behind. That's that's that's where you can find it on YouTube. Trail.

01:30:53:04 - 01:30:57:24
Denis
Yeah. Yeah, it's all publicly available. Sweet.

01:30:58:01 - 01:31:22:17
Denis
Yeah, yeah, we'll try to get the word out there and try to get some people and, Yeah, if anyone wants to reach out and, sort of get, a tour, like anyone, it's not myself, Alex or, next moved out to a different area. So he's not available anymore. But it's pretty much, I guess, myself and Alex, that that that kind of knows, most of the canyon and,

01:31:22:20 - 01:31:40:24
Denis
Yeah, can guide people if, if they want to come out and get, get a more, deeper, sense of where they're climbing. And so, sort of get the, the unknown, notes of, you know, the secret spots in the secret climbs that we haven't put out there yet.

01:31:40:24 - 01:31:44:02
Denis
So, so they can.

01:31:44:02 - 01:31:52:16
Kyle
You heard him. You know, reach reach out to to Dennis if you're interested in, and checking out the area and getting a first person's

01:31:53:00 - 01:31:55:09
Denis
Yep. Yeah.

01:31:55:09 - 01:31:56:26
Kyle
invitation. I'd take advantage of it if I was in

01:31:57:21 - 01:32:04:25
Denis
Yeah. For sure. Yeah. If you come up, come up this side of the border. Yeah. Reach out any time for sure.

01:32:04:25 - 01:32:20:21
Kyle
Well, thanks, dude. I appreciate your time. And, yeah, I had a great time chat with you. It's really cool to to hear about this valley and, Yeah, watching the flick was awesome. I was really astonished at how beautiful the area was, and how unique the rock formations were. I think that's what stood out to me the most.

01:32:20:23 - 01:32:30:12
Kyle
So I can definitely understand the passion you have for the area. And, I wish you the best on, the rest of the probably hundreds to thousands of routes

01:32:31:27 - 01:32:47:23
Denis
Awesome. Yeah. Thanks. Thanks a lot for for having me. And then, Yeah, we're pretty, pretty stoked. Keep it going. And. Yeah, sure. Keep sharing it with, with people and hopefully, Yeah. Get some some some people out in the canyon.